The Armpit Detox is a hygiene trend circulating mainly on social media that aims to detoxify the underarms. The Armpit Detox trend is based on the assumption that through the daily use of deodorant or antiperspirant, toxins and chemical residues enter the body or are deposited in the armpits. These are supposed to be removed by an Armpit Detox – that is, a detoxification.
What does Armpit Detox mean?
Armpit Detox is English and literally means armpit detox. Armpits here are the armpits and detox is the abbreviation for detoxification, which means detoxification.
How does an Armpit Detox work?
According to the trend, those who want to do an Armpit Detox should first apply special masks or treatments with, for example, clay or activated charcoal to the armpits and let them take effect. According to the trend, these should ensure that chemicals and stored toxins from the regular care and odor products that accumulate in the skin are removed. Then, an Armpit Detox is meant to switch from traditional underarm products like drugstore deodorant or antiperspirant to natural, sustainable alternatives that contain no chemicals or toxic additives. In fact, according to the trend, these toxins are the only ones to blame for bad underarm odor, not the sweat we produce.
In addition, the microbiome, i.e. the natural bacterial balance of the armpits, is supposed to be restored.
So you supposedly never need to use deodorant again and still never have problems with unpleasant sweat odor.
Is an Armpit Detox useful?
While clay and activated charcoal masks certainly cleanse well and feel nice, they are not able to detoxify the body. The only organs in the human body that can do that are the liver and kidneys. Nevertheless, not enough research has been done to determine whether or not the substances in conventional underarm products are harmful in the long term. Some researchers fear a connection with breast cancer, for example. However, studies are still needed to confirm this. It is therefore in no way harmful to switch to natural products or to read the ingredients of underarm care products carefully.
Another point that is actually true about an Armpit Detox is the regeneration of the microbiome. This is because researchers have been able to prove that substances from deodorant and co. can still be detected in the skin cells under the arms for weeks. It can therefore be quite helpful to give the skin a break from traditional deodorant products so that these residues can disappear completely.
However, it is not clear whether these residues can be harmful to the skin or the body.
Conclusion on Armpit Detox
Clay masks and activated charcoal under the armpits may be a nice feel-good treatment, but they are completely useless for detoxifying the body and are probably just the next marketing ploy to boost the economy. Nevertheless, there’s something to the Armpit Detox trend: because it doesn’t hurt to give your skin a break from a wide variety of skin care products. By the way, this doesn’t just apply to the armpits: Perfumes, creams, lotions and makeup can also take their toll on the skin in the long run, and it can do you good to do without them for a while until all the skin cells have renewed themselves. This usually takes four to six weeks.